1910 Canadian Dime
The 1910 Canadian Dime is a Canadian dime struck for circulation with 4.47 million made. Value band: metal value. Here is how to recognize it, what makes one worth more and what to check on yours.
- Year
- 1910
- Circulation mintage
- 4,468,331
- Value band
- Metal value
- Composition
- Sterling silver (92.5% silver)
Original illustration of the coin's shape and metal. Tap to flip. Not a picture of the actual design.
Face value · Metal value · Small premium · Collector premium · Significant rarity. We use bands because prices change daily.
What is a 1910 Canadian Dime worth?
The 1910 Canadian Dime is a silver coin with 0.0693 troy ounces of pure silver, so its floor is its metal value: 0.0693 times the day's silver spot price. With 4.47 million made, worn examples trade for about their silver; collectors pay more for sharp, original coins and much more for uncirculated ones with full luster.
What would make yours worth more:
- Sharp detail with original luster
- A recognized variety for the date
- Professional grading for a key date
For market prices, look at recent sold results for the same coin in the same condition, not asking prices.
Quick answers
- Is the 1910 Canadian Dime rare?
- Not by mintage. 4.47 million were made, but it is silver, so even worn examples are worth their metal value rather than face value.
- How many 1910 Canadian dimes were made?
- 4,468,331 were struck for circulation.
- What is the 1910 Canadian Dime made of?
- Sterling silver (92.5% silver). It weighs 2.33 g and measures 18.03 mm.
- Is the 1910 Canadian Dime still legal tender?
- Yes. Canadian dimes are legal tender, but a silver one is worth more for its metal than its face value.
The 1910 dime in context
The 1910 is the last Edward VII dime and a big one. The Ottawa mint struck 4,468,331, by far the largest dime mintage up to that point and more than two and a half times the 1909 total. Canada was in the middle of a long boom. Immigrants were pouring into the prairies, railways were spreading and towns were growing fast, so the demand for small change kept rising.
Edward VII died on 6 May 1910, but the new king's portrait took time to prepare and no George V coins appeared until 1911. All 1910 dimes therefore carry Edward's portrait, giving his reign a large final year. The reverse used the Edwardian leaves wreath introduced in 1909, which would carry on into the next reign. Because so many were struck, the 1910 is the most common Edwardian dime and a good choice if you want a single example of the king. It held the record until the wartime mintage of 1917 pushed past it. Most of them saw long service in pockets and tills.
How to recognize it
De Saulles's bust shows Edward VII crowned and robed, facing right, with the legend EDWARDVS VII DEI GRATIA REX IMPERATOR. On the reverse, 10 CENTS and 1910 sit inside a wreath of maple leaves in the Edwardian style, with a crown at the top. There is no mint mark, since it was struck at Ottawa. The coin is sterling silver at about 2.33 g and 18 mm with a reeded edge, so a little under 0.07 troy oz of pure silver. On worn coins the crown on the king's head and the jewels on his robe are the first areas to lose detail.
1910 Canadian Dime by the numbers
In mintage terms the 1910 Canadian Dime ranks 60th lowest of 157 Canadian dime dates and varieties from 1858 to 2024. The next scarcer is the 1947 Canadian Dime (4.43 million); the next more common is the 1954 Canadian Dime (4.49 million).
For scale, the most common is the 2008 Canadian Dime with 467.5 million, about 105 times as many. The scarcest is the 1884 Canadian Dime with 150,000, 30 times fewer than this one.
Compared with the dates around it, the 1910 output was 2.6 times the 1909 figure and 1.6 times the 1911 figure.
Over the 1910s the Mint produced 39.5 million dimes across 10 dates and varieties; the 1910 Canadian Dime accounts for 11% of that.
What to check on your 1910 Canadian Dime
- Check the date first: silver Canadian dimes carry dates from 1858 to 1968; this one has 0.0693 troy oz. Silver coins are not magnetic and ring clearly when dropped on a hard surface.
- Never clean it. Rubbing or polishing leaves fine scratches that collectors spot at once and that cut the value of silver dates sharply.
- Look at the high points of the portrait and the design. Wear there sets the grade. The grade in turn drives the value of older dimes.
The 1910 is the most available Edward VII dime and in worn condition it is valued mainly for its silver, with a small premium for its age. Better grades still carry a collector premium. It is the ideal type coin for the reign. Look for one with clear crown and robe detail and a natural, even tone, rather than a bright polished surface. Because it is affordable, it is also a good place to practice grading: compare the crown and robe detail on several examples and you will quickly learn what wear looks like.
Edward VII sterling dimes (1902 to 1910)
Queen Victoria died in January 1901 and the first dimes for her son Edward VII are dated 1902. The new king appears crowned and robed, modeled by George William de Saulles, with the legend EDWARDVS VII DEI GRATIA REX IMPERATOR. The reverse kept its familiar layout of 10 CENTS and the date inside a wreath of maple leaves, but the crown at the top was redrawn. London and the Heaton mint both struck dimes in 1902 and 1903, so those years exist with and without an H.
The big change of the reign came in January 1908, when the Ottawa branch of the Royal Mint opened. From that year on, Canada's dimes were struck at home. Output climbed with a growing economy, from 500,000 in 1903 to 4,468,331 in 1910, the largest dime mintage up to that time. The coins are still sterling silver at about 2.33 g and roughly 18 mm, carrying a little under 0.07 troy oz of pure silver. In 1909 the wreath on the reverse was redesigned, which is why the 1909 dime comes in two versions with different leaves.
Edward VII dimes are easier to find than Victorian ones, but most are worn. Look at the crown on the king's head and the folds of his robes, which wear flat quickly. The 1903 London coin, with 500,000 struck, is the scarcest regular date, while the 1908 marks the first year of Ottawa production. On 1909 dimes compare the leaves with a picture of each type before deciding which you have. Every coin of the reign is silver, so none is ever just face value.
Mintage chart
Specifications
| Country | Canada |
|---|---|
| Denomination | 10 cents |
| Issuer | Royal Canadian Mint |
| Year | 1910 |
| Circulation mintage | 4,468,331 |
| Composition | Sterling silver (92.5% silver) |
| Weight | 2.33 g |
| Diameter | 18.03 mm |
| Shape | Round |
| Edge | Reeded |
Frequently asked questions
Why does the 1910 dime still show Edward VII when he died that year?
New portraits took months to prepare. Edward VII died in May 1910 and George V's portrait was not ready until 1911, so the mint kept using Edward's dies for the whole of 1910.
Is the 1910 dime rare?
No. With 4,468,331 struck it is the most common Edwardian dime. Worn examples are valued mainly for their silver, with more for coins in high grades. Its importance is as the last Edward VII date.
Mintage figures: Dime (Canadian coin) (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0), compiled from Royal Canadian Mint figures. How we build these pages.